April, 2007

And now, for something completely different. Puppies!!

Last month we wrote about Katie, the girl who came from the Kent Animal Shelter. Remember how we said she came with Kennel Cough, something we had never experienced before? Well, she was full of surprises. Actually, she was full of puppies. The vet clinic delayed her spay because she had kennel cough, while reassuring us we had plenty of time because the urinalysis showed she was in her last week of heat when we got her. Right…..

The weekend before her revised spay appointment we realized Katie was pregnant, so we called Bobbie LaFortune. She came right over and confirmed Katie was not only pregnant, she was due in 4-5 days. Having never been around a litter of puppies in our lives, we were apprehensive, but Bobbie reassured us we had lots of help if we needed it. When we told her that Katie’s temperature was down she loaded up all her whelping supplies and brought them over.

The morning of March 28 Katie was obviously in labor, and gave us her first puppy just after noon. An hour and a half later the second popped out. Three more hours went by, with Bobbie here for advice, and we could see Katie was worn out. We went to the vet clinic and an x-ray showed two puppies still waiting. Two shots later with no effect we decided a c-section was needed. One of the two puppies didn’t make it, but the other – the biggest of the litter – came through the ordeal in fine shape. Katie now has three healthy puppies who are gaining weight daily. The single boy is white and looks like a Sammy, while the two girls are black with white markings, so parentage is unknown. We can only say Mom is a Samoyed, while Dad is a traveling salesman.

The x-ray of Katie was revealing in another way. Because it shows her spine we can see she has moderate spondylosis, and she also has one bad hip. Neither of these affect the way she moves, and since the day after the puppies arrived she has been routinely jumping over baby gates when she hears the sound of food preparation in the kitchen. Nevertheless, based on that x-ray and her general condition we believe she is around 10 years old. It probably doesn’t need to be said, but of course she was spayed during the c-section. Because of that, the vet gave us pills to make sure her milk came in, and she has more than enough for three pups.

This month have some great news about Emily, who has finally found a forever home. She was placed twice and came back both times because of her incredible energy level. Ever since our daughter Kristina picked her up at the Coeur d’Alene shelter as a puppy, we have heard Kristina say she wished she could have kept Emily. She and her husband, Jim, purchased a new home recently with a big fenced back yard, and Jim surprised her by bringing her here to adopt Emily. They already have a lab mix named Parker and we all knew how well the two played together. This was a perfect match, and although we miss Emily we’re going to see her often.

Oakley is here, waiting for his perfect home. He is a bit of a special case because his treatment in the past wasn’t very good. He is still shy and anxious in some circumstances, so we haven’t listed him publicly. We will wait for an application that’s just right to come along, and then see if he fits that home. Meanwhile he is more than happy here.

We have been asked to place a nine year old Sammy boy in the Marysville area. His owner says he was her husband’s dog, and since her husband passed away the dog is now alone for 14 hours a day. She would like to see him in a home where someone can give him attention. Darlene Rautio has offered to do an assessment and we hope to make a direct placement from present to new home, since we can’t take any fosters while we have puppies. This will make Spring, our usual busy time, challenging. If you can foster a dog for a short time, please let us know.

We continue to work on organizing Northwest Samoyed Rescue, which will combine Washington and Oregon rescue groups as a non-profit 501(c)(3) federal corporation. It’s slow work but will have a payoff because donations to it will be tax-deductible and we can pursue grants. We’re registered already as a Washington State non-profit corporation and hope to soon make our federal filing.

Help from friends is the only way rescue can function, and this month we want to give special thanks to Bobbie LaFortune. She dropped everything several times to help with Katie, loaned us everything we need to take care of the puppies, and even went to the clinic with us for the c-section. We also spent hours on the phone with Cyndy Knighton, who has supplied us with advice and all the vaccinations the puppies will need. Thank you both!

Puppy pictures are at <http://nwsams.smugmug.com/gallery/2539135>.